Knight in Shining Armor
by Swiftchanted
Summary: She was fading away, like a black and white photograph. No one knew why. She was the damsel in distress, just waiting for her knight in shining armor to ride up on his white horse and save her from the clutches of evil. Collab oneshot with Alisabeth.


**Hello my lovely followers! This is a collab one shot with the amazing Alisabeth, aka When I Make it Shine! Go check her oneshot out…it kicks this oneshot's butt by a LONG shot! And be sure to enjoy this story. If you don't…it might cry. ;)**

Everyone called her a prize. As though she was the untamable, and if you were lucky to have her tamed then you were a winner. If you were one that she confided in, you were a winner. If she even gave you the time of day, you were a winner. Stella Yamada was considered a prize to be won. A trophy almost.  
>And the one who saw her as a trophy the most?<p>

Ray Beech.

Ray Beech, the egocentric bitchy teenager who was always after something he couldn't have, but yet went after it anyways. He went after Stella as though it was a hot pursuit car chase. And when he finally caught up to her, she surprised the both of them by saying yes. And everyone was stunned.

Stella? Like Ray? Was the world ending?

But the band was happy for her nonetheless, now everyone in the band was in a relationship. Olivia and Wen were in a relationship-an extremely awkward and cautious relationship, but a relationship. Mo and Scott had gotten back together, and Charlie had gone after the writer of the school's newspaper, Victoria. So Stella being Ray's girlfriend didn't exactly appeal to the band, but they weren't completely annoyed by it.

However one day, the breaking point came for none other than Charlie Delgado. Ever since her and Ray started dating, it had always been 'Ray cooked dinner for me last night!' or 'Ray left me flowers at my doorstep!' or 'Ray proposed!' Well the last one didn't exactly happen, but Charlie knew it was a matter of time before the Ray talk grew to that level. As much as he wanted to speak up, he didn't. Stella was happy and that was all that mattered. She deserved to relax and just be happy. But when he opened up a janitors closet by accident and saw Ray and Stella in a full on make out session, Charlie exploded. Even though it was his fault that he opened the closet by accident, seeing Stella make out with Ray drove him over the edge. Hearing about stuff like this was one thing, but seeing it with your own two eyes was another.

After the walk in incident, Stella began to slowly fade away. All her exuberance and color was fading from her and she was turning into a black and white photograph. The only time the band actually saw the real Stella shining through was during band rehearsals, and even then she was only half of what she was. And she was always seen hunched over writing in a notebook. Anytime that one of the band members would ask to see it she would immediately act as though they offended her. She would shake her head and walk away hastily. Charlie had pretty much forgotten what Stella sounded like.

Stella soon began ditching band practices. As much as she denied being with Ray during practice, the band didn't seem to believe her. She would always state that she wasn't feeling good, and that it wouldn't happen again. But it always did. The band didn't know what to believe at that point. Was Stella truly not feeling good, or was she just using it as a cover up for her making out in the back of Ray's car?

Stella's usual loud and colorful wardrobe slowly drifted into a lot of blacks, skinny jeans, boots, and jackets. No one knew why. Mo had suggested that she was just experimenting with clothing, but Wen pointed out that no one, not even determined Stella Yamada stuck with the same almost repetitive wardrobe for that long. Charlie had just looked down. Something was truly wrong with Stella, and he was determined to find out what it was and why, and planned to stop it. But how he was going to do that without knowing what was wrong with her was a challenge itself.

Practice ended that Friday afternoon, and without saying a word, the quiet Stella began rounding all her things up as hastily as she could. Olivia and Mo exchanged glances and walked over to Stella. Mo bent down beside Stella and handed her the same black notebook that the band never was allowed to hold. Stella quickly grabbed the notebook out of Mo's hand and stuffed it in her guitar case. Mo just looked at Olivia, and Olivia shrugged. Stella stood up, with her guitar case in hand, and quickly walked out of the auditorium.

The second the door shut, Mo sighed. "Something's wrong with her. She's wearing all black, we're not allowed to even lay eyes on that notebook of hers, and she's missing practices, which is NOT like her."

Olivia nodded. "Does anyone know what might be the reason?"

Everyone exchanged glances and all shook their heads. Clearly no one knew why Stella was being so secluded and secretive towards the others. Mo shook her head as she put her bass into its case. "Well, someone's gotta figure it out before something goes terribly wrong," she muttered. And for once in their lives, the entire band agreed.

* * *

><p>Stella sighed, sitting down on the side of the curb. The Dante's sign flickered a few yards away, and she pulled out her phone with shaking fingers. Her fingers felt like ice on top of each other, and she shivered a bit as she dialed the only person that she wanted to talk to at the moment.<p>

"Mm, hello?" the voice of a sleepy Charlie Delgado mumbled back.

"Charlie?" Stella whispered so quietly that Charlie had to strain to hear her.

"Stella, what's the problem? It's one in the morning."

"Please…just meet me at Dante's okay?" she said shakily, hanging up the phone delicately and putting her head between her knees.

Charlie stumbled out of bed, wondering what in the world Stella could possibly need at this hour. He looked down; wearing only a white t-shirt and a pair of pajama pants, he sighed. That'd just have to do for now. Slipping on a jacket and a pair of Nikes, he drug himself into his bathroom where he splashed his face with water and took a quick swig of mouthwash, swishing it around in his mouth.

Walking out of his house as silently as he possibly could, he crept out to his car and tried to start it up without making much of a noise. But to his luck, it seemed as though it was being extra noisy for the heck of it. Sighing, he just continued backing out and then heading down the dark and deserted road.

For the past few months, Stella had been so happy it seemed, seeing as how she was in a relationship with Ray. Charlie never did understand why the two had been together. They always had butted heads in the past, so why would they stop then? But to his utter and complete shock, it seemed to, and the couple was happier than anyone would have ever thought. So why did Stella sound so distressed on the phone? Was the problem that she had hidden from everyone else finally showing through? What was it? He tried to think of possible explanations for the hint of despair and sorrow in her voice, but he continually drew a blank. He sighed; it was one in the morning, his brain was not ready to start figuring out relationship problems. He'd rather just wait and let Stella explain everything than try to figure it out himself.

He pulled into the lot of Dante's and saw a person sitting there. Stella. He clambered out of his car, and shut the door behind him, it echoing out through the night. Stella looked up at him, her face tearstained. Words couldn't describe how much his heart ached at that moment. Just seeing her scarred him. He sat down beside her, looking at her. In his head, he was trying to form an appropriate sentence to say to her, but each and every possibility seemed wrong.

She smiled at him sadly. "Thank you for coming," she muttered, her voice still tainted with the despair and sorrow of whatever was causing her pain. She was clutching onto one of her hoodies to dear life, just the sleeves around her arms to keep her warm. One of them fell, and Charlie gasped a little as Stella hastily pulled up the sleeves. She obviously didn't want anyone seeing what was resting underneath those sleeves.

It was like a monster that had lain dormant for hundreds of years and was finally coming to the surface. It haunted Charlie, and he gently pulled the hoodie down and traced over her skin. Now the new wardrobe made sense. It explained almost everything. On just that one arm were bruises, scrapes, scars, things he would never remove from his mental image gallery. Stella looked up at him with alarmed eyes. One bruise stood out to Charlie, and he pressed his hand gently against it. It was almost a perfect fit, except the fingers were a bit wider on her marred skin.

"Stella…" he whispered.

Stella had tears in her eyes as she began to talk. "This is why I've been missing practices and wearing long sleeves, and being so secretive around you guys. I never wanted to act like that, believe me, I truly didn't. But Ray…he told me if I ever told…he'd try and kill me…and once I thought that he might actually do it…"

"But…why?" Charlie asked, rolling down her other sleeve to see that the other arm was almost exactly identical to the first. Stella took a shaky breath.

"Ray has this…unbelievable temper, and he'd take it out on me sometimes. At first he claimed it was an accident and that it would never happen again, but of course that was a lie." Tears were now rolling down her face. "It was almost like work being his girlfriend, he told me that if I wasn't with him at x time at x place he'd beat me, and that's why I'd skip practices. And that notebook had everything detailed in it, I couldn't live with myself if you guys had seen that at the time…I didn't want you guys knowing because I knew you guys would try and protect me. I'm old enough to fight my own fights. Ray just caused me so much misery…and tonight, when I broke up with him…" she trailed off, sniffling. Charlie then saw on her exposed shoulder a raw mark that was bleeding.

Charlie didn't know if he should be furious or sympathetic or what. This was beyond unbelievable. How could someone degrade Stella in just a matter of weeks? He made her so happy in the beginning, and then everything took this dark turn that just blew his mind. Now everything made sense to him. Why she would practically bite their heads off if they touched her notebook. Why she would wear long sleeves and all black. Why she missed band practice so often. Why she tried disappearing in her music, if only for a moment, just to escape the pain that Ray was causing her. Everything started to fall in place, the missing puzzle pieces appearing right in front of him.

It took what Charlie thought to be ages to find words, when in reality it was only a minute. "Stella…I understand and respect your decision to fight your own fights…but why did Ray do this? There had to have been some explanation…"

Stella sighed, looking up at the cloudless sky. "He claimed once that Jules had tried to make out with him, and he clutched me so hard that I didn't know if he was clutching me because he wanted me to believe him or because there was another reason. After that he started making up false accusations, giving him reasons to hit me. I don't know why though…and every time it happened I'd always ask myself, 'What did I do to deserve this?'" she choked as she tumbled into Charlie's chest.

For a moment, Stella was doubled over; her head against Charlie's propped up knee, sobbing her heart out. Charlie rested one of his hands over Stella's back gingerly, scared that there might have been raw spots lying on her back. He began to rub her back in a slow, soothing motion in small circles, trying to ease her of her extreme pain. Her bag rested on the right of her, and he couldn't help but wonder if the forbidden notebook rested in the depths of it.

"Stella?" he asked quietly. She sat up a bit and cocked her head to the side. "If you…wouldn't mind…if your notebook was on you…" Stella seemed to understand what he was asking, and reached over to her bag, rummaging around in it. She pulled out the black notebook, and sighed. Tracing over the binding momentarily, she handed it to Charlie. He was shocked. Finally, what they'd all wanted to see, what was in the contents of that notebook. Now that Charlie knew the whole story, he was a bit frightened to see the horrors of it. Stella reached over and opened the cover. Lying on the first page was a simple three lined poem in the small centered box. _Her __smile turned fake. Her laugh covered up the tears. It was all too much to take._

Charlie didn't know what to think as he turned to the first page. Written in Stella's rough turned delicate handwriting was a small entry. _Today when Ray came over, he clutched me like there was no tomorrow. He looked me in the eyes and swore that he wasn't cheating on that blonde bitch Jules. I didn't know what to think, all I could concentrate on was the intense pain coming from where he was holding me. I whimpered a bit, and he loosened his grip. Apologizing with a smile, he offered me a drink. And as I left his house that day, I shed my first tear thanks to a guy. And it was not because of a breakup or of pure joy. It was because of pure pain._ Charlie could feel a lump in his throat and tried not to cry as he read on through her notebook, the small pieces of literature that Stella had written tugging on his heartstrings.

Charlie began to flip through the pages, skimming over them. It hurt his heart too much to read about the pain and torture Stella went through almost each and every day. Reading about how she was too ashamed to tell the band that she was obeying Ray like she was his master to avoid getting abused just made his heart hurt. Some of the pages were crinkled and tearstained; others had holes and ink spots where Stella had obviously gotten so angry and broken pens. It broke his heart. One entry in particular brought tears to his eyes.

_Today Ray told me that he was sorry for what he told me earlier. He claims that he thinks he might be bipolar, but part of me highly doubts it. Another part of me believes it. What other good explanation would he have for hitting me each and every day and then turning off sweet and buying me flowers? It confuses me, it truly does. I don't understand what I did to deserve this pain. To some people I guess I'm considered a prize to be won, just sitting on a shelf, waiting to be won by someone. And when I am won, I'm considered special, and then after awhile I get old. Used. Annoying. Maybe that's all I am to Ray. A temporary prize. The satisfaction of being the person to finally tame the wild and restless Stella Yamada, and then trashing me as soon as it all dies down. Thinking it over, I couldn't breathe I was crying so hard. Is that what people think of me? A prize to be won? Nothing special? It hurt, it truly did. I thought I meant more than that to people. Even though I do have the tendency to overreact…maybe the things they tell me are right. Maybe I am being used by Ray. Damn it all. _

_Skies are crying, I am watching__  
><em>_Catching tear drops in my hands__  
><em>_Only silence, as it's ending__  
><em>_Like we never had a chance_

_Do you have to make me feel like__  
><em>_there's nothing left of me?_

_You can take everything I have__  
><em>_You can break everything I am__  
><em>_Like I'm made of glass__  
><em>_Like I'm made of paper__  
><em>_Go on a try to tear me down__  
><em>_I will be rising from the ground__  
><em>_Like a skyscraper__  
><em>_Like a skyscraper_

_As the smoke clears, I awaken__  
><em>_and untangle you from me__  
><em>_Would it make you, feel better__  
><em>_to watch me while I bleed?_

_All my windows still are broken__  
><em>_But I'm standing on my feet_

_You can take everything I have__  
><em>_You can break everything I am__  
><em>_Like I'm made of glass__  
><em>_Like I'm made of paper__  
><em>_Go on a try to tear me down__  
><em>_I will be rising from the ground__  
><em>_Like a skyscraper__  
><em>_Like a skyscraper_

_Go run, run, run__  
><em>_I'm gonna stay right here, watch you disappear__  
><em>_Yea-ohh__  
><em>_Go run, run, run__  
><em>_Yeah, it's a long way down__  
><em>_But I am closer to the clouds up here_

_You can take everything I have__  
><em>_You can break everything I am__  
><em>_Like I'm made of glass__  
><em>_Like I'm made of paper__  
><em>_Ohh Ohh__  
><em>_Go on a try to tear me down__  
><em>_I will be rising from the ground__  
><em>_Like a skyscraper__  
><em>_Like a skyscraper_

_(Like a skyscraper)_

_Like a skyscraper__  
><em>_Like a skyscraper_

Charlie could feel his heart crack as he slowly closed the notebook. There were true horrors in that book that made him want to envelop Stella in a hug and keep her safe forever. She sighed and took the book back from him. "Stella…I am so, so sorry that this had to happen to you," Charlie whispered. Stella smiled sadly.

"Thanks Charlie…it's not your fault you know," she said, running her fingers through her hair. She was acting as though this was an everyday thing; for her, being abused probably was, but Charlie didn't understand why she was acting so nonchalant. Was she trying to prove that she was strong even though she clearly was weak?

"I feel like it is. If you had only told me…I could have helped you Stella. You know that I have your back through thick and thin." Stella gave Charlie a wavering smile as she intertwined both her hands together and rested them upon her knees. Charlie reached over and rested his hand on top of her intertwined ones. They felt like ice; chilled over by the cruelness and the pain she endured.

"I know." Stella breathed, as she laid her head on Charlie's shoulder warily, as though she was scared of his reaction. He knew that she was now forever going to be scared to fall in love after this. And as he rested his head gingerly on top of hers, he knew that he'd be there for her. He was going to make Ray pay for everything that he put Stella through. He was going to make Ray suffer the way he made Stella suffer, but to a new extent. Charlie promised to himself as he sat there, silently comforting the broken girl beside him, that he was going to put an end to her misery.

* * *

><p>Over the weekend, he tried to think of ways to make the blonde bastard who scarred his Stella physically and emotionally pay. Wait…did he just call her his Stella? No, she was everyone's Stella, except for those who hurt her, but he was hers and she was his…no she wasn't! She was his best girl friend. Space between the words girl and friend and there always would be. End of discussion.<p>

Monday approached with revenge all over the tongue of Charlie Delgado. Today was the day that if he saw Ray Beech daring to show his face and approach Stella, he'd do more than just injure Ray. He could taste, see, and hear nothing but vengeance. It had entered his veins and was flowing throughout his body like poison.

Driving to school, Maroon 5's 'She will be Loved' was blaring on the radio. He turned the dial up and leaned back a bit into the seat, watching the road. The song described him and Stella almost to a T. Ever since he and Victoria and gone their separate ways, he had found himself growing closer and closer to Stella until the whole Ray situation happened. Fearing that he'd take physical action if he found out about the tight bonds between the two, Stella had slowly retreated into the darkness, only seeking Charlie when she needed him. Charlie beamed a bit; he felt good that she had called him after her and Ray's breakup and none of the others. He was touched that she trusted him that much. The song ended, but it was on repeat in his head as he climbed out of his car, locking it.

He smiled as he saw Stella's mother's car round the corner. Stella clambered out, looking brighter than she usually did. She was wearing a bohemian styled over the shoulder draped white shirt, with a pair of dark ripped skinny jeans. On her feet was a pair of brown boots. Charlie smiled. One day away from Ray and Stella was already glowing. He noticed as he walked up to her that she had covered up the scars and bruises on her arms and shoulders with makeup. She beamed as she hugged him delicately.

"Hi," she breathed. He smiled back at her as she hugged his arm, holding onto it as the two walked through the parking lot. The other band members joined the two of them, questioning the position Stella and Charlie were in. Stella just laughed as the band began talking about everything under the sun. The band had already assumed that Ray and Stella were over by the smile on Stella's face and the new glow radiating off her skin.

The band stopped short however, when Ray's convertible pulled into the parking lot. He whizzed past them, circling around to a space, Jules sitting in the front seat. The two climbed out, and Stella cowered a bit behind Charlie as Ray walked up to them. It was clear that Stella was still a bit frightened of what Ray could do to her. Charlie snarled at Ray, and Mo and Olivia rested hands on Stella's shoulders. Ray walked around to Stella, throwing Mo and Olivia's hands off of her shoulders. He licked his finger and began scrubbing at her shoulder. Stella whimpered and looked at Charlie, her eyes pleading for help. Her shoulder grew red as the scars and raw marks began to appear on her skin. Olivia and Mo gasped in horror as Stella looked down, the pain being unbearable by the force Ray was applying on her skin. He laughed quietly as her entire shoulder was revealed, scars and all.

"Looks like someone told," he murmured, dangerously low. Stella's eyes went wide.

"No," she whispered, looking down. She tried to cover up her shoulder, but Ray yanked the top back down to where it had been positioned.

"No, don't hide your marks, you've told, so why hide them? Ashamed of yourself?" he taunted. Stella had her eyes fixated on the sidewalk, her eyes threatening to erupt with tears. Mo and Olivia exchanged looks. They had no idea what was going on, but it was obvious Charlie, Stella, and Ray knew. "Look at me!" Ray shouted. Stella shook her head no very quickly, and Ray raised an eyebrow. Jules rested an arm on Ray's shoulder and looked at the argument like lots of other arriving students. "What was that?" Ray asked, his voice dangerously low.

Mo piped up. "She said no." Charlie mentally smacked his forehead. As nice as Mo's intentions were, they were not going to help in this situation. He gave her a look, and she stepped back a bit. Stella was gritting her teeth, trying hard not to cry. The mixture of Ray's verbal abuse and the burning pain of her shoulder was eating away at both her and Charlie.

"She knows not to say no to me, isn't that right Stella?" he asked. When Stella didn't reply, he tilted her chin up to where she was forced to look in his eyes. She tried to look away but it was very hard when Ray was blocking all over her vision. "Isn't that right?" Ray's voice was now at a deadly whisper. Stella didn't respond, and he growled, rearing his hand back and slapping her across the face. Stella whimpered as a tear fell down her face and Mo and Olivia gasped in shock. Charlie couldn't take it anymore.

He brought his fist to Ray's face as hard as he possibly could, Stella and the girls watching in shock. Charlie could only see red at the moment he was so furious. Ray looked at Charlie with fury, and Charlie growled something as he hit Ray square in the nose. A sickening crunch was heard, and it was clear that Charlie had done serious damage to Ray's nose. "Lay a hand on Stella ever again and it won't just be your nose being broken." Charlie said. Ray glared at the group and stormed off into the building, Jules following behind him in hot pursuit.

Stella looked up at Charlie. "Why did you do that?" she whispered. Her cheek was turning red from where Ray had slapped her, and the ghost of the stray tear glistened on her face. Mo and Olivia were silent behind the two, while Wen and Scott just watched the whole scene in utter silence.

"You said it yourself, you don't deserve it." Charlie said with a smile on his face. He wiped away the tear that had fallen out of the corner of her eye and she smiled. She flung her arms around him in a hug. He was truly her knight in shining armor, she thought. No guy would have ever taken that kind of stand for her, except for Charlie and Charlie alone. Mo and Olivia looked at each other with smiles on their faces. They didn't know what had gone down, but seeing the smile on their best friends' faces made the whole situation disappear for a bit.

The band turned to walk in the building, Stella holding onto Charlie's arm with a smile on her face bigger than it had been before. She didn't bother to readjust the sleeve on her shirt, all her scars were open and she was wearing those that were visible at the moment with pride. She looked at Charlie for a moment, laughing. She didn't know what was happening to the two of them, but she liked it. She felt all tingly inside, like a thousand sparklers had erupted in her stomach. Looking at Mo, Olivia, Wen and Scott, she sighed contently. There would be more time to explain the whole story to everyone, but at the moment, Stella didn't care. She was returning stronger than ever, and no one was bringing her down this time.

And the scars on her arms were a promise to herself and Charlie that she would be loved.

**Well wasn't that cute! I have honestly never written anything like this...so wow. This story made me cry in the writing process of it because abusive relationships are just absolutely horrific and tragic. I haven't been through one, which was why trying to see Stella's vision of things a bit difficult. And she was a bit out of character in this one…sorry for that! But love (and evil love) can change a person. I don't own Skyscraper by Demi Lovato (which, by the way, is amazing! Go buy it!) or She will be Loved by Maroon 5. And be sure to go check out my amazing partner, Alisabeth's oneshot! It's the collab part to this lovely little emotional piece. Hers is ten times better though. Anyways, I think I'll shut up now! Until next time, my lovelies! Love, Emzy **


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